HomeMy WebLinkAbout2016 07-11 St. Paul area police take extra security measures amid tension PIONEER PRESS7/11/2016
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St. Paul police HQ locked down during protests
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By IIldlll'lA II l GC ""II' II fllllllla mgottfried@pioneerpress.com
PUBLISHED: July 8, 2016 at 10:05 am I UPDATED: July 8, 2016 at 8:06 pm
St. Paul police officers paired up for safety Friday before hitting the streets. And "Lobby Closed" signs hung on the
front doors of St. Paul police headquarters, normally open 24/7.
The extra precautions come amid tensions since the St. Anthony police shooting of 32 -year-old IF"Ilwiilair do
Cast:iile duiiHing a traffic stop Wednesday in Falcon Heights and as officers have come under fire around the country.
In the deadliest day for U.S. law enforcement since the Sept. 11 attacks, 1.2 offiiceirs wrwaeire shot iiia 1Dallas — five of
them fatally — by a sniper during a protest march Thursday night.
The suspect told authorities he was upset about the police shootings of two black men this week — Castile and
Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge, La. — and wanted to exterminate whites, "especially white officers." On Friday, police
officers were shot in Georgia, Tennessee and Missouri.
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7/11/2016
St. Paul police HQ locked down during protests
St. Paul Police Chief Todd Axtell said Friday that there has not been a specific threat against his department.
However, people have left comments on the department's Facebook page, such as, "What happened in Dallas
should have happened in your city."
"It certainly has a chilling effect when something like what happened in Dallas occurs," Axtell said. "Any time law
enforcement officers are targeted simply because they're wearing a uniform, it really drives home the point about
why it's so important to be careful and it raises the stress level of police officers."
The worry especially weighs on officers' families.
Meghan Trangsrud, vice president of Backing the Blue Line, said she and others are proud to be police wives, "but
there's always the voice in the back of your head where you wonder if this will be their last shift, if they're going to
become a target."
The tension was especially high at the St. Anthony Police Department since St. Anthony officer Jeronimo Yanez
fatally shot Castile.
"Every officer here is getting death threats," said a man who answered the phone at the small department Friday
but wouldn't give his name.
St. Anthony officers are doubling up in squad cars and being extra careful, he said. The department has asked other
agencies, such as Maplewood police, to assist them with patrols this weekend.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, which is investigating the shooting, has not provided information
about what led Yanez, 28, to fire his gun. Castile's girlfriend, who Liiwwe stireairned the aftermath of the shooting, said
Castile had a permit to carry a gun, that he informed Yanez that he was armed, and had been reaching for his ID
when the officer fired.
Gov. Mark Dayton appealed for "calm and non-violence" on Friday, saying the events in Dallas served as a reminder
of the risks for law enforcement. He said he was grateful for the protection St. Paul police and state troopers
provide during protests outside the Governor's Residence in St. Paul.
But Ipocb ce oirgainizai: orris ciriii:iicized Dayton after he said Thursday that he believes Castile would not have been shot
if he had been white.
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7/11/2016
St. Paul police HQ locked down during protests
Dave Titus, the head of the St. Paul police union, said in a statement Friday, "Speculation and cop -bashing rhetoric
by public officials and the media is dangerously irresponsible and will only lead to more violence. We ask Gov.
Dayton to reference fact, rather than simply express emotion."
When St. Paul police locked down police headquarters at 367 Grove St. at 9 p.m. Thursday, it was roughly the same
time a sniper opened fire on officers in Dallas.
Police officials made the decision before the Texas officers were killed. It was related to the protest in St. Paul over
Castile's killing and was "a precaution to keep our officers safe in light of local and national events," said Steve
Linders, a St. Paul police spokesman.
Because of the lockdown, the public cannot access the building to pick up police reports or property at the
property room, but Chief Axtell said they'll be able to again on Monday.
Linders stressed that people should continue calling 911 as needed or 651-291-1111 for non -emergencies.
The St. Paul Police Department also began requiring all officers to respond to calls in pairs on Thursday afternoon.
"Sometimes when tensions get high after a controversial police shooting, we partner up officersjust to ensure they
don't become a target for potential retaliation," Axtell said.
Officers are being required to work 12 -hour shifts vs. their regular 10 hours, Linders said.
Maplewood also paired up officers and stepped up monitoring of the police department by putting a portable
surveillance camera outside, said Chief Paul Schnell.
PwA Sclhinell (Cou irtesy photo)
As police chief, Schnell doesn't have to wear his uniform every day and on Fridays he often wears a sport coat. But
on this Friday, the day after the officers were killed in Dallas, Schnell made the decision to put on the
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7/11/2016 St. Paul police HQ locked down during protests
Maplewood uniform to support his officers.
"I worry about the challenges that they're facing on a personal level and the questions that they're going to get,"
Schnell said. "While I have really great confidence in them, I know how challenging it is and I want everyone —
officers and the people we encounter — to be OK. When things are heightened, as they are right now, I think the
concern is that much greater."
Rachel Stassen-Berger contributed to this report.
FYI: Backing the Blue Line, a nonprofit organization, is fund raising to provide food and snacks to officers in St. Paul
and elsewhere in Ramsey County when they're working long shifts at protests or otherwise. People can donate
heire.
Mara Gottfried has been a Pioneer Press reporter since 2001, mostly covering public safety.
Gottfried lived in St. Paul as a young child and returned to the Twin Cities after graduating from the
University of Maryland. You can reach her at 651-228-5262.
Follow Mara H. Gottfried @ lMaia("ot i ied
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